Criminals funnel 1.5 million euros through Indian bank Swift system

Criminals have struck again at a bank by exploiting vulnerabilities in the Swift system. Via three fraudulent transactions at the Indian City Union Bank, 1.5 million euros was transferred.

The criminals tried to transfer $500,000 through a New York bank to an account with a bank in Dubai and $1,000,000 to an account in China. In addition, EUR 300,000 was transferred via a bank in Frankfurt to an account with a Turkish bank.

The City Union Bank discovered the theft of a total of 1.5 million euros on 7 February. The transaction of half a million dollars to Dubai could be blocked. It is not known how the criminals managed to gain access to the City Union Bank’s Swift system.

The bank emphasizes that there is no evidence that the fraudsters had any help from within and that India’s central bank was not affected. Measures were also taken to improve security. Criminals are more likely to target the Swift system to divert money from banks. Banks use Swift, which stands for Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, to transact among themselves.

Update, 12.30: Amounts aligned with those as they are at the source.